Last week I was asked the question “How did you go from where you were [with food] to where you are now?”.

I had to give my answer some thought.

I knew it hadn’t happened overnight, going from secret binge-eating to feeling calm when alone with a bag of giant cookies. So how did I get here?

Full disclosure: leaving a stressful job and taking anti-anxiety meds made a massive difference in helping with the triggers for my dodgy eating behaviours, and it would be disingenuous to pretend otherwise.

But even in the two years between leaving teaching and starting on the medication, I was in a very much better place with the way I (ab)used food. 

If I could pinpoint one thing that made a massive difference, it was, bizarrely, eating more.

What does that mean, and how can that be right?

The problem was that I would start each morning with the (misguided) best intention to eat very little during the day so that I could manage my weight. 

I’d choose low calorie breakfasts (two Weetabix or one piece of Marmite toast or just a black coffee) then struggle through the morning on more coffee or maybe a couple of rice cakes.

Lunch would be outwardly healthy to make sure my lovely colleagues wouldn’t notice I had a problem: a veggie filled pitta, a mug of homemade soup, a 250kcal John West tuna lunch pot, a small tub of leftovers.

By the time I left work at about 6pm, I already knew I’d be stopping off at the supermarket, where I’d buy a heck-ton of crap to pack into myself in the 10 minute drive home.

Thankfully, my change in career taught me that a higher calorie, protein-rich filling breakfast would set the tone for steadier, healthier eating patterns throughout the day. Mega sandwiches of eggs, avo and mushrooms on seeded granary bread, porridge with peanut butter and banana, fat-free Greek yoghurt with berries, nuts and seeds – all keeping energy, concentration and joy levels up where they should be.

To avoid over-eating in the evening, the best thing is to eat enough during the day so you’re not crazy hungry later on, so here are a few lunch ideas which should help get you through the afternoon.

Top tip – don’t do what I did, and assume that for weight loss, the fewer calories the better. We all deserve to be well-nourished and happy, and even if we are trying to lose weight that absolutely still applies.

Ideally, just like for breakfast, you want a combo of lean protein (meat, fish, diary, plant-based), healthy fats (olive oil, avocado, nuts, seeds) and fibre (fruit, veg, wholegrains).

So, how about:

• pasta salad with ham/tuna/feta, butter beans, peppers, tomatoes, cucumber, sweetcorn, pumpkin seeds, drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil
• wholemeal wrap or pitta with loads of crudités, smooshed black beans and hummus
• mega sandwich of a seeded wholemeal bread with chicken/tuna/cream cheese and fun stuff: gherkins, grated carrot, rocket, watercress, other salad bits – make it so big you have to climb it
• high-protein soups (as mentioned last week)
• lovely lentils mixed with loads of colourful veg (go extra sexy with pomegranate, jumbo raisins  and sunflower seeds), with baked sweet potato and a dollop of creme fraiche

These take minutes to prepare in advance, so to be satisfied and smug, get them ready the night before!